I have been exploring the extent of the rot in my 17' thunderbird (Seminole outboard) today. The transom has rot across the whole bottom half. I pulled some the fiberglass off from the inside to expose part of the damage. The ends of 2 of the the 3 stringers are deterioated for less than a foot from their connection with the transom. These stringers form the sides of the sump. The center stringer which stops short of the transom (connects to the sump) and the remainder of the other 2 stringers are in good shape. There is some rot in the deck (plywood) where the fiberglass deck covering had cracked allowed water to penetrate.
My questions are:
1. Is it possible to splice the two deterioated stringers to remove the deteriorated section (scab with suitable material and then glass over)?
2. If it is feasible to splice the two stringers would it be okay to cut the cap about 2' from the transom and only remove the rear portion of the cap to replace the transom? This would be a lot simpler. The cap is going to be very heavy and difficult to handle. The bow area is part of the cap (deck and seating).
If I have to replace all of the 2 deterioated stringers I will have to remove the entire cap. If I do this I will replace all of the deck. Any advice will be appreciated. This will be my first boat hull repair and I am sure that I will be asking a lot of questions. I am experienced at wood working and structural design, but I am not familiar with boat construction.
My questions are:
1. Is it possible to splice the two deterioated stringers to remove the deteriorated section (scab with suitable material and then glass over)?
2. If it is feasible to splice the two stringers would it be okay to cut the cap about 2' from the transom and only remove the rear portion of the cap to replace the transom? This would be a lot simpler. The cap is going to be very heavy and difficult to handle. The bow area is part of the cap (deck and seating).
If I have to replace all of the 2 deterioated stringers I will have to remove the entire cap. If I do this I will replace all of the deck. Any advice will be appreciated. This will be my first boat hull repair and I am sure that I will be asking a lot of questions. I am experienced at wood working and structural design, but I am not familiar with boat construction.